Anonymous wrote:I didn’t grow up with sit down breakfasts before school so maybe there’s a step I am missing. I’ve been trying to nail this down for over 20years even before I had kids. I’ve tried starting hours early. Something inevitably throws off the experience. I tried when I had just one kid, I tried with two, now with three. They are 16, 12, and 8.

How are people doing this? Is it just a tv/movies experience?!

Ward Cleaver

I'm not hungry until about 11.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids do club swim with AM practice. There is no time.

Just get the whole family up at 3 am, there’s always time 🥹 Won’t somebody think of the children?

You’re missing the point. “I don’t want to” =/= “there’s no time”.

No one wants to eat a full breakfast before a swim practice.

We made both our kids real breakfasts up through middle school, when they were still willing to do it. They would sit and read a book while they ate normally and often the parent who made breakfast sat and ate with them and read the news. Also, conversation happened.

By high school, my kids prioritized sleep and also they just stop wanting to eat breakfast or at least mine did. So it was grab something on the way out the door, if lucky.

I don't think it really takes all that much time to do this. It's an extra 10-15 minutes in the morning.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids do club swim with AM practice. There is no time.

Just get the whole family up at 3 am, there’s always time 🥹 Won’t somebody think of the children?

You’re missing the point. “I don’t want to” =/= “there’s no time”.

Anonymous wrote:My kids do club swim with AM practice. There is no time.

Time doesn’t exist before you leave the house?! That’s incredible!

Anonymous wrote:My kids do club swim with AM practice. There is no time.

Just get the whole family up at 3 am, there’s always time 🥹 Won’t somebody think of the children?

My kids do club swim with AM practice. There is no time.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, we do it every day. Would the kids prefer to sleep an extra 30 minutes? Of course but mornings at the table are just as important as dinners.

I wake up at 5am and get myself totally ready and then get the kids up by 6. By 6:40 they are at the table where breakfast is totally made and plated (eggs, yogurt, fruit, etc). We read the headlines and then do a last minute prep for any tests that’s day.

They leave by 7:15 for school and I take the youngest to daycare at 7:30. (3 kids total ages 4, 8and 13)

No rush in the morning and everyone leaves calm and well fed.

Omg what’s wrong with you?

13 year olds do not need you making breakfast or going over school work at breakfast.

You sick as a parent

Your child will never be responsible adults they will have anxiety

DP but I didn't learn to cook until I graduated from college. I cook breakfast and dinner for my family every day, and I make lunches most days too from leftovers, or just PB&J or similar. Kids are 12 and 9 and yes I quiz the younger one on math facts or spelling over breakfast. I am perfectly responsible, hold down a great job, and don't have anxiety. And my kids eat decently healthy food rather than the shlock they'd eat if left to their own devices. (Some people's kids might make themselves eggs and fruit in the morning, but mine sure wouldn't.)

Your way is not the only way.

When our tweens began playing competitive travel sports, they suddenly started wanting eggs for breakfast. I'd rather take the time to offer them some eggs, meat, milk, and a piece of fruit at home than have them eat junk in the car or at school because they're starving.

Anonymous wrote:We run a short order service in the AM. Wake up kid2. Kid1 is already up. Ask what they want. Kid1 always wants leftovers. Warm something up. Kid2 wants a baked thing or cereal. They eat staggered about 10 minutes. Sometimes they want eggs.

I just need to keep my A game in the evenings so that we have leftovers and muffins. Makes mornings easy.

Similar here. Kids used to eat together but now have different school times so one eats before the other, but a parent always sits with the first one or is at least around to talk to, and then parent eats with the second kid before taking them to school. First kid usually wants oatmeal or eggs - easy and quick to make while doing other morning chores like unloading the dishwasher. Second has a much bigger range, from leftovers to fruit to oatmeal, but that is also quick. Kids give their "order" the night before so we know what we're making. Parents also eat quick things, yogurt or oatmeal or leftovers.

Both kids have always liked breakfast and eat most at breakfast and lunch, rather than dinner. If they hated it, it might be different. I won't say it isn't a bit rushed, but that's because kid #2 is a dawdler. If they weren't dawdling at breakfast they'd be dawdling with something else. It is always a rush to get that one out the door no matter the occasion or time of day!

I did in two other careers. Currently, I’d need to get up at 4:30 am.

Anonymous wrote:Yes, we do it every day. Would the kids prefer to sleep an extra 30 minutes? Of course but mornings at the table are just as important as dinners.

I wake up at 5am and get myself totally ready and then get the kids up by 6. By 6:40 they are at the table where breakfast is totally made and plated (eggs, yogurt, fruit, etc). We read the headlines and then do a last minute prep for any tests that’s day.

They leave by 7:15 for school and I take the youngest to daycare at 7:30. (3 kids total ages 4, 8and 13)

No rush in the morning and everyone leaves calm and well fed.

Omg what’s wrong with you?

13 year olds do not need you making breakfast or going over school work at breakfast.

You sick as a parent

Your child will never be responsible adults they will have anxiety

Kids are in college now but we typically always did. It helps that they went to bed early and woke up early. We had pancakes or eggs or whatever together. But we often did not have dinner together during the high school years: so many meets and games and practices so we hardly ever were all home at the same time during the week. Breakfast was the main together meal time.

When I was a kid, our daily newspaper was an evening delivery every day except Sunday (no Saturday paper). So my only memories reading the newspaper at breakfast growing up were on Sunday.

Also my dad worked in an industry where he left the house at 4am most mornings (he was an engineer but supervised construction projects and had to be on-site at 5am to review plans and status of the project with construction teams). Most days my siblings and I got ourselves some cereal or oatmeal on our own schedule before leaving for school at various times depending on which school we were attending. I don't remember our mom ever eating with us -- she woke up when my dad did but was generally doing chores in the AM while we got ready.